Sunday, August 31, 2008

California Bill Forces Retailers to Protect Data

Retailers in California would not be allowed to store customers' personal information unless they took stringent steps to prevent identity theft under a bill state lawmakers approved Sunday.

Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento, said many businesses fail to take even the most basic measures to protect that information, creating an opening for identity thieves.

His bill would prohibit, under most circumstances, any company that takes credit card or debit card information from retaining account numbers, verification codes or personal identification numbers.

Companies that do keep the information, such as those that accept recurring payments, would be required to follow specific guidelines to protect it. Those guidelines were established by the credit card industry.